On the northeastern shores of the Chesapeake Bay lies the historic town of Rock Hall, where many of its residents rose early to celebrate our nation’s birthday. Quite a few of them were dressed to run the annual Rock Hall Flat Five, a five-mile race now in its thirty-first year and one of the oldest Fourth of July races in Maryland.

Rock Hall is one of Maryland’s older towns located in southwestern Kent County, coming up on its three-hundred-and-fifth year as a town. The Rock Hall Flat Five is Maryland Eastern Shore’s longest running Fourth of July footrace, and it may have been the only one on the Maryland Eastern Shore for a long time aside from the Ocean Pines Association Freedom 5K in its inaugural year in Ocean Pines. In addition, it is one of the longest running Fourth of July races on the Maryland Eastern Shore next to the Peter Rowe Memorial 4th of July Fun Run in Nassawadox, Virginia. The course is a large flat loop that begins at the town’s municipal building and then proceeds through the center of town and through some neighborhoods by the waters of the Chesapeake for the first two miles. Runners are treated to scenery of the Chesapeake Bay to their left, as well as quaint shops, seafood restaurants, and quiet houses. For most of the third mile and a majority of the fourth, runners run straight in an eastbound direction on Route 20, with several water stops and sprinklers set up by the race staff and neighbors who come out to support the race. The runners then make a right onto Route 676 for a little over a mile, running past the municipal building where the race started, and finishing in the center town, welcomed by much fanfare and spray from water guns by many locals and tourists. The race is soon followed by an awards ceremony as well as a Fourth of July Parade.

As is the case with plenty of races that occur on the Fourth of July, the high temperatures present a significant challenge. However, with temperatures in the high 70’s/lower 80’s in addition to cloud cover for a majority of the race, runners experienced great racing conditions.

"It was just a good day," said Jay Silcox, who ran a personal best time of 31:26.

"The weather was good," added Mark Vansant, who runs many different races throughout Kent County. "Actually we had a good turn-out for this time of the week.”

The Rock Hall Flat Five is one of three prestigious races of what local runners call the “Kent County Triple Crown" that also includes the Chestertown Tea Party Distance Classic 10-Mile Run (in its 36th year, usually occurring on Memorial Day weekend) and the Still Pond to Betterton Tree Run (in its 29th year, a unique point-to-point 3.6-mile race that usually occurs in early April).

Among the participants of the race was local runner, Dale Wood, who has run all three races in the Kent County Triple Crown every year that they have occurred. Wood reported that he felt ill the night before; he still did not want to miss out on running his thirty-first consecutive Rock Hall Flat Five, and he said that he was feeling better by the start of the race. Wood is one of many locals and out-of-town runners who make it an annual priority to run the Flat Five.

"It's a wonderful tradition that I enjoy doing every year,” said Peg Voorhees, who finished second among the female Masters runners. Voorhees is a runner from Kent County who has completed many local races on the Maryland Eastern Shore, and won the Rock Hall Flat Five in 1988, 1995, and 1996, the latter of the three years was when she ran her fastest winning time of 33:46.

The course record for men was set the very first year of the race in 1982, when Bill Foley completed the course in 25:29. The second fastest and third fastest times for males were run by Rob Rainey in 26:16 (1988) and by Rob Jones in 27:01 (1998) respectively. The course record for women of 30:46 was set in 1990 by Diane Lausman, who also won the Rock Hall Flat Five in 1987 and 1989 (when Lausman ran it in 32:15, the third fastest time by a female). The second time fastest time of 31:45 for females was run in 1998 by Mylene Cox. Lee Cox has won the Rock Hall the most frequently in the years 1986, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, and 1996 (his fastest winning time of 27:07 being in 1992).

The 2012 overall female winner, Drew Sanclemente, has not only won the Rock Hall Flat Five the most frequently among female winners, she has done so for five consecutive years from 2008 to the present, with her fastest winning time being 34:45 in 2010. Today, she ran 36:15, slightly faster than last year.

"It's one of the best races to run!" said Sanclemente, who has completed her freshman year at the Ursuline Academy, having run cross-country and track & field for the school. "The people who put it on are like family. The town is so supportive of the race; they love us, and we love them!”

The support that Sanclemente speaks of is evidenced by the cheering, sprinklers, water stops, squirt guns, and spray bottles that friendly spectators spray the runners and walkers with to cool them down and keep them motivated.

The male winner, Sean Jones, also has a record streak of four consecutive wins in a row. His fastest winning time has been 28:21 in 2010. Today he won the race in 29:35. Jones has also won other local races in the past three years, such as the Race to Erase MS 5K and the Still Pond to Betterton Tree Run. Jones runs marathons and has been involved in cross-training.

In addition to the overall male and female winners, prizes were awarded to the top three finishers in various age categories. The top three Junior Men (under 20 years of age) were Sawyer Cornelius (32:11), runner-up Henry Pechin (33:00), and finishing third was Joseph Ciganek (33:49). Ciganek completed his first five mile race today.

The top three Junior Women (under 25 years of age) were ahead of each other by sizeable margins with Haley Reid (37:19) winning the division, then Jennifer Cowell (40:51) was runner up, followed by Abby Crockett (47:02).

The top three Open Men (ages 20-35) were Francis Ciganek (31:19), closely followed by Jay Silcox (31:26). Avid racer, Steven Wheeler, finished third in this age group division with a time of 32:54.

"It's a great race," said Wheeler, race director of the Race to Erase MS 5K in nearby Chestertown that occurs annually on the Saturday of Labor Day weekend. "It’s really fast. It’s really flat. Local race, a lot of history."

The top three Open Women (ages 26-39) were Jen Campbell (39:27), closely followed by Brianna Kelly (39:47), and Laura Mills finishing third among the Open Women age group.

The top three Submaster Men (ages 36-49) were Trey Hill, followed by Chris Henry (36:00), and Mike Smith (36:58).

The top three Master Women (40 years or older) were Wanda McCue (42:43), keeping a large gap between her and runner-up, Peg Voorhees (44:49), who was closely followed by third place finisher Melissa Bones (44:51).

The top three Master Men (50 years or older) were Jim Reid (31:12) with a large lead over runner-up, Steve Scales, who had a fair lead over Henry Sabetti, who finished third in Master Men category.

The race had almost ninety finishers, many of whom were very happy with how they ran, and enjoyed the race in general. Some were well-experienced runners and others were attempting the five-mile distance for the first time. The flat even terrain of the course as well as the crowd support and friendly atmosphere of the town made it a pleasant race for newer runners. Also, the race fee is relatively inexpensive with amenities including t-shirts, post-race beverages, performance awards, and timing provided by race director and Kent County High School Cross Country & Track Field Coach, Dennis Herrmann.

"Low cost, it’s a smaller size which is nice, because you don’t have a large crowd to fight with," said Katie Warrington regarding the things she liked about the race. “I think it’s a good race for anyone who’s done 5K’s and wants to step it up this year.”

Dennis Herrmann, who has just completed his fortieth year of teaching science at Kent County High School as well as coaching their Cross County, Indoor Track & Field, and Outdoor Track & Field Programs, has been in charge of the Rock Hall Flat Five since its beginnings in 1982. He genuinely enjoys putting the race on, and seeing many new faces as well as regulars among the participants of the Rock Hall Flat Five each year.

"I get a mix of people," said Herrmann. "Some who do it every year and some who I coached in high school who are still running. And there are always some new ones, and that just warms my heart.”

Herrmann delights in participants' positive experiences with the race, which are many, and he looks forward to hosting it next year on the Fourth of July. Information on the Rock Hall Flat Five race can be found on the Art/Entertainment Calendar of the town’s website (http://www.rockhallmd.com).

Male Finishers
Name                       Age      Age Category     Time
1.   Sean Jones             47      Submaster Men.   29:35
2.   Jim Reid               50      Master Men       31:12
3.   Francis Ciganek        30      Open Men         31:19
4.   Jay Silcox             34      Open Men         31:26
5.   Sawyer Cornelius       15      Junior Men       32:11
6.   Steve Wheeler          28      Open Men         32:51
7.   Henry Pechin           17      Junior Men       33:00
8.   Noah Wood              29      Open Men         33:33
9.   Joseph Ciganek         18      Junior Men       33:49
10.  Mike Heck              18      Junior Men       33:50
11.  Trey Hill              37      Submaster Men
12.  Chris Henry            49      Submaster Men    36:00
13.  Stephen Heck           13      Junior Men       36:16
14.  Mike Smith             42      Submaster Men    36:58
15.  Charlie Scales         14      Junior Men       37:07
16.  Steve Scales           52      Master Men    
17.  Mike Bucci             45      Submaster Men    37:50
18.  Finlay Buchanan-Jacobs 12      Junior Men       38:04
19.  Paul Kaus              56      Submaster Men    39:26
20.  Graham Corby           28      Open Men         39:46
21.  Henry Sabetti          50      Master Men         
22.  Mark Vansant           50      Master Men       41:16
23.  Jason Shertzer         35      Open Men         41:31
24.  Tim McGrath            59      Master Men       41:39
25.  Jason Crooks           29      Open Men         42:03
26.  Gary Loraus            55      Master Men       42:08
27.  Rich McCue             50      Master Men       42:44
28.  Arne Soreson           53      Master Men       43:19
29.  Henry Pechin           43      Submaster Men       
30.  James Porter           52      Master Men
31.  John Price             50      Master Men   
32.  Steven Sheehan         63      Master Men       44:40
33.  Collin Smith           09      Junior Men       44:48
34.  Dan Bones              53      Master Men       44:50
35.  David Hoopes           58      Submaster Men    44:52
36.  Terry Armstrong        49      Submaster Men    45:58
37.  Dean Pusey             57      Master Men
38.  Christopher Heck       51      Master Men       47:30
39.  Sace Cookercy          08      Junior Men       47:47
40.  Lars Sorenson          17      Junior Men       48:47
41.  John Jacquette         25      Open Men
42.  Richard Cookercy       51      Master Men       48:52
43.  Frank Jonas            44      Submaster Men    49:37
44.  Frank Jewell           44      Submaster Men    50:07
45.  Andrew Campbell        31      Open Men         50:52
46.  Peter Metz             36      Submaster Men    51:21
47.  Alan Hunt              60      Master Men       51:56
48.  Charles Roth           63      Master Men
49.  Tommy Powell           12      Junior Men       58:12
50.  Andrew Heft            14      Junior Men     1:04:01

Female Finishers
Name                    Age      Age Category      Time

1.   Drew Sanclemente    15      Junior Women      36:15
2.   Haley Reid          15      Junior Women      37:19
3.   Jen Campbell        29      Open Women        39:27
4.   Brianna Kelly       27      Open Women        39:47
5.   Jennifer Cowell     17      Junior Women      40:51
6.   Wanda McCue         46      Master Women      42:43
7.   Peggy Voorhees      53      Master Women      44:49
8.   Melissa Bones       40      Master Women      44:51
9.   Laura Mills         31      Open Women         
10.  Abby Crockett       13      Junior Women      47:02
11.  Dawn Fenstermacher  40      Master Women      47:37
12.  Meredith Fish       18      Junior Women      47:40
13.  Barb Thompson       56      Master Women      47:42
14.  Suzanne Fish        55      Master Women      48:15
15.  Arraminta Ware      47      Master Women      48:29
16.  Katherine Haselkorn 24      Junior Women      48:37
17.  Cory Scheibe        38      Open Women        48:42
18.  Grace Crockett      44      Master Women      49:06
19.  Margaret Newell     38      Open Women        49:25
20.  Emily Schatzman     26      Open Women        49:28
21.  Meredith Deckelmen  29      Open Women        49:47
22.  Linda Jacobs        49      Master Women      50:06
23.  Carol Britten       55      Master Women      51:24
24.  Sandra Nutbrown     46      Master Women      51:43
25.  Julie Anderson      40      Master Women      51:55
26.  Susan Wright-Taylor 42      Master Women      52:13
27.  Kerry Rooney        49      Master Women      52:19
28.  Tracy Brilz         44      Master Women
29.  April Sharp         55      Master Women      54:05
30.  Natalie Cuchiara    24      Junior Women      54:06
31.  Astri Sorenson      24      Junior Women      54:42
32.  Jackie Nordhoff     42      Master Women      54:43
33.  Katie Warrington    28      Open Women        56:54
34.  Erin Hopwood        38      Open Women      1:01:52
35.  Kathy Leinbacit     60      Master Women    1:02:28
36.  Erin Poole          38      Open Women      1:02:49
37.  Amber Wachowiz      32      Master Women    1:04:00
38.  Carol Richarson-Heft 47     Master Women    1:06:34